Scranton’s first taste of ‘The Office’ …

May 3rd, 2013

Sharing the front page with Scranton reaction to “The Office” was the Supreme Court hearings on Terri Schiavo, a sexual assault and octopi walking on land.

On March 24, 2005, the American version of the British show “The Office” made it debut on NBC. The show was set in Scranton and our man on the street Christopher J. Kelly interviewed residents on their reaction to the show.

The room is a drab, claustrophobic maze of cubicles populated by bitter sycophants and wisecracking slackers.The boss is a sadistic jerk. Sales are down, corporate is considering closing the place and next Tuesday will be eaten up by a seminar on respecting diversity in the workplace.Working in Scranton has never been this outrageous — or this much fun.The fictional Dunder-Mifflin paper supply company opened for business Thursday night, as NBC debuted the American adaptation of the cult British comedy, “The Office.” Set in Scranton, the half-hour comedy employs a mock documentary style and a staff of crazies who are easily recognizable to anyone who’s ever spent a long, gray day under flickering fluorescent lights.Most advance reviews of the show were glowing, but how would it play in its fictional hometown? The Times-Tribune newspapers invited a handful of Scrantonians — natives and transplants — to an “Office” party to find out.From the first punchline,“It’s like ‘All in the Family’ for today,” said Douglas Fink, 38, of Clarks Summit. The owner of Pennsylvania Paper and Supply Co. in Scranton liked the edgy, unflinching style of the show.Desiree Ranella, 23, agreed. A sales representative with the Greater Scranton Chamber of Commerce, she praised the show’s willingness to tackle tough interpersonal issues present in many offices.“It’s refreshing,” she said. “People are always tiptoeing around these things, but everybody can identify with it.”After opening credits that included signs for Mulberry Street, Mr. Fink’s business and the sign welcoming travelers entering the city on the North Scranton Expressway, the episode introduced primary characters who soon learned their jobs might be lost to downsizing.As expected, the character who drew the strongest reactions was the callous, clueless regional manager, Michael Scott, played by comedian Steve Carell.“He’s a fool, but he’s a sympathetic fool,” said Toni Glover, 53, an English professor at the University of Scranton. “The draw is to tune in every week and see what he screws up next.”The group didn’t turn on Michael, even during a scene when he pretended to fires Pam as a practical joke. The group laughed hysterically as Pam reacted to the “bad news.”“You knew it was a joke all along, so you didn’t feel bad laughing,” said Louis DeMarco, a 22-year-old architectural engineering major at Penn State Worthington Scranton.As long as the show resists taking potshots at its host city, “The Office” could give Scranton’s national image a long-needed boost, said Fran Calpin, communications director for Condron & Co. The Scranton marketing firm designed Lackawanna County’s “Lackawanna Wonderful” campaign.“It’s so unique that if it’s successful, I think it might give Scranton a sort of cachet that it hasn’t had in a while and really deserves,” he said.Everyone in the group said they plan to watch the show next week, when it moves to Tuesday at 9:30 p.m. Previews for the episode, which focuses on diversity in the workplace, drew bellylaughs.“It’s risky,” Ms. Ranella said. “It’s really cutting edge, and it’s really funny.”